Overboard

Chapter Ten

*Harry’s P.O.V*

Kendall was the only thing keeping us sane. Somehow she was still managing to see the bright side, even though we’d seen no boats, no planes, no anything since we’d washed up. Niall was seriously worrying me, and his banged up arm was deteriorating quickly, the bruising getting darker and his pained cries getting louder and more frequent. Louis couldn’t do anything to help but keep him cool and well fed. The fish I’d somehow managed to spear had lasted us a little more than ten minutes, so we were back to living off berries and fruit. Thankfully some time when we were all asleep, the skies had opened up and dumped enough rain to get us all rehydrated. I’d left the five baskets Kendall and Louis had made out in the open on the off chance it might happen, and we all woke up to see them full of fresh water which had Louis squealing.

Kendall was curled up beside Niall, holding Louis’s cool and damp shirt to his clammy forehead, trying to bring his temperature down, whispering to him as she did so. Louis was sitting beside me by the large fire, his thigh brushing against mine occasionally which made my lips twitch into a smile.

“Hazz,” Louis whispered after a while.

I tilted my head and smiled at my gorgeous boyfriend.

“What is it Boobear?”

“I’m scared . . what if there’s nobody looking for us? What if Niall doesn’t get help in time? What if-”

“Stop, stop with the what if’s, they’ll rip you apart. We just need to focus on keeping Niall healthy and keeping this fire going,” I cut him off, reaching my arm around his small shoulders and pulling him into me.

“Smoke’s hard to see in the daylight,” he said quietly.

“But not impossible,” I added.

“I love you Hazz,” Louis sighed, smiling weakly up at me.

“I love you too, more than anything,” I grinned, which made his smile grow until his eyes crinkled.

“Sing to me?” he asked.

“On one condition,” I smirked, brushing his hair out of his face and resting my hand on his warm cheek.

“And what’s that?”

“Kiss me,” I breathed.

Louis caught his lower lip under his teeth and smiled before wrapping his hands around my neck and bringing my face closer to his. His breath was hot against my skin as he dotted kisses along my jaw, making my body shiver and my heart throb. I couldn’t take it anymore and clasped his chin in my hand, bringing his lips to mine. He smiled into the kiss, his lips rough from the sun and the sand. He pulled back much too early and rested his forehead against mine.

“Now how about that song,” he smirked.

I rolled my eyes at him and lay back on the sand, pulling him with me so his head rested on my chest, his hand sprawled out across my stomach. My fingers trailed down his bare spine and he shivered at my touch which made me smile. I took a deep breath before quietly singing the lyrics to one of Lou’s favourite songs, and eventually he joined in, his heartbreakingly beautiful voice weaving with mine and making both of us smile.

*Liam’s P.O.V*

There was one day left. Twenty-four hours until they were going to give up the search, and I couldn’t stop pacing, couldn’t stop muttering to myself, and couldn’t stop worrying Zayn. He kept trying to talk to me and calm me down, but all he did was make me even more stressed, and I’d eventually shut myself in Niall’s room of the house, locking the door tightly behind me.

Zayn had spent a good half hour trying to convince me to come out and talk to him, but I couldn’t. After a while I heard a slight bang on the door followed by a heavy thud, and I assumed he’d slumped into the door and set up a post outside.

He hadn’t made a noise in over an hour, and I hadn’t either. I was sitting on the edge of Niall’s unmade bed, my legs folded up under me and my head resting in my hands. Fear was getting the better of me and had me neglecting the one thing I loved more in the world than the boys that were missing, but I couldn’t bring myself to go to Zayn. I had no physical strength and even if I called out to him, he wouldn’t be able to get in because I’d locked the door.

I was so angry at the search and rescue team for giving up so easily, six days was a pathetic marker and it infuriated me so much. At the same time six days seemed like such a long time, and I was so terrified for the boys because if they hadn’t somehow found land, that would have meant the three of them would be stuck on a piece of rubber in the middle of the ocean without food or water or shelter. Every last thought brought me back to the one thing that I couldn’t shake. What if Zayn and I had gone with them? We could have, we would have, but we stayed behind to understand with each other where our relationship was. If we’d tagged along anyway, things could have turned out so differently and the boys could have been safe, still on the boat and having the time of their lives, but instead they’d been missing for five days and for the first time ever I was desperate for the fans to go into their freaky mode and hunt them down like they always managed to do.

“Liam?” Zayn asked, his voice tired.

I couldn’t speak. The words were stuck in my throat but I couldn’t get them out.

“Please Li, I need you right now,” his voice broke.

I swung the door open before I even realized I’d leapt off the bed. Zayn was lying against the wall, his eyes closed and his arms wrapped around himself, comforting him. I crouched down beside him and pulled him up into my arms, holding him tightly. It was a rare thing to see Zayn upset, and it made me ignore everything I was feeling because all I could think to do was make sure he was okay.

“Don’t ever do that to me again Li, please,” he breathed, hugging me back and nuzzling his head against my neck.

“Never, I promise,” I whispered.

“I love you so much, I can’t lose you,” Zayn choked out.

“You’re never going to lose me Zayn, I love you too much,” I assured him, biting my lip and tightening my grip around him.

A shrill ringing cut through the silence, making Zayn and I jump. I stumbled to my feet and down the stairs to the kitchen to grab the phone.

“Hello?” I said into the receiver, my voice shaking.

“Liam, they found the boys, and a girl that was with them. There’s a car coming to pick you and Zayn up to take you to the hospital now,” came a familiar voice through the phone.

“The hospital? Which one?” I demanded.

“Liam-”

“Paul! What hospital?” I yelled into the phone.

“London Bridge,” he told me with a heavy sigh.

I dropped the phone and grabbed the car keys from the hook in the kitchen before running back up the stairs to grab Zayn. My fingers twined with his and I pulled him to his feet, then back down the stairs and into the garage.

“What’s going on Liam?” he asked as we jumped into the car.

“They found them, and they’re at the hospital,” I choked out.